to think Covid is changing people in unusual and disturbing ways?

[tttigress]

Have you noticed Covid changing you friends? Effecting their mental health?

Couple of examples of friends who have been very vocal on social media:

Friend1:
previously: quite left wing, into animal rights.
now: sees Covid as a scam, posting stuff from right ring/conspiracy oriented sites, attended a protest where people like David Icke was in attendance, many comments about "do your own research, don't listen to the main stream media"

Friend2:
previously: quite relaxed (maybe too relaxed), bit of a stoner, bit of a drinker, life of the part, quite sociable.
now: hardly leaves the house due to Covid, thinks people should wear masks at all times - even when outside, thinks people are taking Covid nowhere near seriously enough, thinks the media is underplaying Covid, thinks doctors are underplaying Covid etc. Although they think their life is in imminent danger from Covid still smokes and drinks at home

I am am bit concerned about the mental health crisis Covid could be causing

But I can imagine for a lot of adults who are single and rely on park run and other organised sporting events and training as their time for meeting other people, having most participative sport cancelled has been devastating. I know of 3 club runners who have taken their own lives during these restrictions.

I dont know a single person who has been badly affected by coronavirus, although that might be due to my age group and social circle being predominately young and very healthy. Then again, thuse 3 suicudes were all young and very healthy people too.

24 hour news and social media doesn't help matters in today's society. It just heightens anxiety, bad news and panic.

@knittingaddict

Problems with it, yes, but the key question is 'can the hospitals cope?'. We can't stop people getting ill. A lot of people get the flu every year and sadly die or have post-viral effects. Not everyone gets the flu vaccine though.

I ventured out yesterday Out of the small town I live in; my friend was shouted at in front of my little boy, this woman went into his space, where he was already stood and ranted about the 2 meter rule. Heated words exchanged between them, then later around the same b&q whilst we were looking at something she came back for another pop, very close to his face, pulled her face mask off to continue her her ironic rant, I moved my little one and stood utterly gobsmacked watching this woman unravel. It’s put me off going out further than the supermarket/local walk until people remember how to people. What ever is happening In her head/life and I imagine many others is at best uncomfortable. Even her (I assume) husband looked baffled by her relentless ranting & behaviour. Super horrid experience .... this is all negatively playing heavily with peoples sanity. Hate it

My relationship with everyone has changed. My view on everything has changed this past year.

I dont know anyone who isnt openly questioning the whole pandemic.
People who keep themselves out of the general talk of politics and things going on in the world are now just as involved as everyone else.

Friends who are medical are talking conspiracy theories and denying covid is an issue.

I know a lot of naive people who do not sanitise and wear masks.

No one follows the rules.

I've delved further into my anxious tendencies.

My daughters MH has suffered.

Local takeaway owner whos always been suave looking, tough upper lip, was last week in a pair of jogging bottoms, talking about how down he feels and how covid is a scam.

It feels like everyone is quite affected mentally and everyones angry and distrustful of the media.

@GreenlandTheMovie Omg, that's terrible about those people taking their own lives! We don't hear much about this in the media, although of course we do hear about all the Covid deaths. I wonder how many people are suffering from depression end even dying due to the restrictions?

I've never been an anxious person at all but COVID has given me a huge amount of anxiety. It started the night of the Queens Speech back in March/April. It's not with COVID because I've had it, and I'm in my 30s, normal BMI, no known conditions... it's with how terrible the economy is going to be, the fact that if interest rates go up to above 5% we would struggle with our mortgage payments, that there are children living in worst poverty because of Covid, my business might go under if lots of our customers go bust.... so many unknowns and it's stressful.

I don't think interest rates will go anywhere near 5%, it's in everyone's interest at the moment to make borrowing cheap and encourage spending which means low interest rates. Interest rates are generally increased to counter inflation driven by wage increases and I can't see that happening for years.
The economy should bounce back quite quickly from covid now the vaccines are going to come. I'm personally more concerned about the economic effects of Brexit, but that's another thread.

@rhowton

I've never been an anxious person at all but COVID has given me a huge amount of anxiety. It started the night of the Queens Speech back in March/April. It's not with COVID because I've had it, and I'm in my 30s, normal BMI, no known conditions... it's with how terrible the economy is going to be, the fact that if interest rates go up to above 5% we would struggle with our mortgage payments, that there are children living in worst poverty because of Covid, my business might go under if lots of our customers go bust.... so many unknowns and it's stressful.

Didn't you feel the same with the last recession? Or is it your status as a business owner that makes you feel more vulnerable this time?

I think it's social media that's having the detrimental effects on society and mental health

I don’t get the sense that anyone anywhere is complaining more than others. If people are going through this and not complaining, I’d wonder about their attachment to reality.

I’ve been working from home since March. My family is not local so I don’t see them at all.

I stay home, limit contact, wear a mask, wash my hands. I don’t think it’s a scam but the shifting guidelines along with the politicizing and my general distrust of the media makes me lack faith in the handling of it.

I worry most about the mental health aspect and about people living in abusive situations.

@Gwenhwyfar in 2007/8 I was in my first year of uni and if I'm honest, I was pretty oblivious to it all. Having a business now is really worrying, just hoping people can survive.

Alternative Perspective Your perspective isn't alternative at all really is it. It's pretty mainstream. If you consign every controversial theory to the basket labelled "stupid" and unfriend people whose views are not mainstream then it seems to me you are not at all open minded.

The microchip thing may be pretty far fetched but comparing that to a mobile telephone is misleading in my opinion. If needs be, a mobile phone can be discarded whereas a microchip inserted somewhere in the body isn't quite so easy to remove.

I just feel this general malaise about humans and our stupidity and vanity and impact on the planet - I've lost my faith in big business leaders and politicians - I have low level anger all the time - I want to stay home and avoid things.

These changes are new. I am affected by the news headlines regarding covid-19/Trump/climate change and social media. Perhaps I should turn it all off.

YY perhaps it is social media not covid?

@FatCatThinCat just wanted to offer some
To be fair, that information board sounds poorly written!

Oh and YANBU OP

My best friends husband has always been an absolute dick, very thinly veiled know it all, bordering on aggressive and frankly concerning. This has now, I feel, given him an excuse to finally drop the veil and lose his absolute shit.
I have a text from him saying 'People murder their whole families and afterwards friends say how did this happen? Well I know how it happens. I'm living it'

This was all because I suggested he shouldn't take his 85 year old MIL, who he is sole carer for god help her, to a coffee shop so busy they had to stand up, a day before lockdown 1.

He then blocked me and I haven't spoken to him since.

He is utterly unhinged, always has been, but this has almost given him an excuse to cut people out who dared to disagree with him. He is a vile, vile man and these people were only ever just bobbing along on a surface level.

Now they can lose their minds to people but they have an excuse 'because of COVID'

I suspect that even with a reasonably sucessful vaccine, many people are going to remain in a fear state where they are overly concious of things like germs and illnesses, and it will affect their functioning and mental health.

I also really hope that the kinds of arguments being used for covid aren't repurposed for more general use - there are all kinds of common illnesses around that people could continue to want special measures to reduce.

@Guga

I don't see what's wrong with friend 1 suggesting you do your own research and not listen to mainstream media? Quite sensible.

I'm not surprised that friend 2 is a stoner and seems paranoid about going out and catching a virus. And they're still smoking so it will just be heightened all the more.

Because do your own research translates to 'watch biased and uninformed YouTube vids'. Most of us are not in fact in possession of the education to assess without bias (myself included and I'm a Cambridge MA- humanities) taking the consensus of a group of scientific experts is our best bet. Yes, the media has bias- read widely and know what they are. But look up the Dunning Kruger effect before assuming it's 'wise' to promote conspiracy theories to the general public.

I had a thread on here a few months back about a friend of 20 years who came to stay with me after lockdown one. Both live alone, decided to bubble up. He was the biggest arsehole ever all weekend. Borderline abusive (verbally), very controlling etc. It was like a total bastard had taken over my usually very laid back and lovely friend's body. I couldn't fathom what happened to him but a lot of mutual friends put it down to isolation of lockdown affecting him mentally.

Just to add to this, I don't trust the Govt but the conspiracy doesn't make any sense motivationally. I think if the Govt were to lie to us, it would be to play down Covid so we don't lockdown and the economy isn't screwed, but they can't do that as its worldwide so the public are to aware of what's happening.

@Goosefoot I’m worried about that too. Saint Boris has practically made it his personal mission to “beat” Covid, instead of admitting defeat and that it might be time to learn to live with it, and everyone else has to make the sacrifices to his end. Let’s hope we don’t get some other politician with a Messiah complex who decides they’re going to “cure” the common cold in this way.

@Guineapigbridge

YY perhaps it is social media not covid?

It is social media (and 24 hour rolling news media).

Say this was the 1980s. There'd be no social media and you'd only have a few news bulletins a day.

The main issue would be boredom for people who are stuck inside (watch terrestrial television or videos, play board games, read a book, do tasks around the house etc). But social media is not healthy and causes mental illness in normal times, let alone during a pandemic.

@Guineapigbridge Really, does social media really cause mental illness? Is that just if you spend all day at it?

People were cunts before covid, they're cunts during covid and I'm pretty sure they'll still be cunts after covid.